Identifying student help-seeking behavior patterns and help-seeking tendencies from student problem-solving and help-seeking behavior data: An educational data mining approach

Studies have shown that students have different help-seeking behavior patterns and tendencies and furthermore, that students with certain help-seeking behavior patterns and tendencies may have poor performance (i.e., at-risk students). This study applied an educational data mining approach, includin...

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Main Author: Chih-Yueh Chou, Wei-Han Chen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: International Forum of Educational Technology & Society 2025-04-01
Series:Educational Technology & Society
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Online Access:https://www.j-ets.net/collection/published-issues/28_2#h.hmuyxcdixa8o
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author Chih-Yueh Chou, Wei-Han Chen
author_facet Chih-Yueh Chou, Wei-Han Chen
author_sort Chih-Yueh Chou, Wei-Han Chen
collection DOAJ
description Studies have shown that students have different help-seeking behavior patterns and tendencies and furthermore, that students with certain help-seeking behavior patterns and tendencies may have poor performance (i.e., at-risk students). This study applied an educational data mining approach, including clustering and classification, to analyze students’ problem-solving and help-seeking data in a computer assisted learning system to identify student help-seeking behavior patterns and tendencies. First, nine observable problem-solving and help-seeking features for identifying help-seeking behavior patterns were established. Second, this study applied the k-means clustering method and identified three well-known help-seeking behavior patterns: executive, avoidant, and instrumental help-seeking. The results further identified two new help-seeking behavior patterns. One was static instrumental help-seeking and the other was static instrumental and executive help-seeking. Third, executive help-seeking and static instrumental and executive help-seeking patterns could be used as at-risk predicators of poor performance. Fourth, the study applied clustered and identified results to build a minimum distance classifier to identify help-seeking behavior patterns in new data. The study also investigated the accuracy of the classifier in early identifying help-seeking behavior patterns from early-stage data. The early identification accuracy was 61% for the first three minutes and 75% for the seven-minutes of early-stage data, respectively. Fifth, this study identified three help-seeking tendencies: independent problem-solvers, executive help-seekers, and static instrumental and executive help-seekers. In summary, the study showed the feasibility and effectiveness of applying an educational data mining approach, including clustering and classification, to build data-driven student models to identify student help-seeking behavior patterns and tendencies.
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spelling doaj-art-2687fca34eb44633b8bd7dff99b058972025-08-20T02:17:34ZengInternational Forum of Educational Technology & SocietyEducational Technology & Society1176-36471436-45222025-04-0128294110https://doi.org/10.30191/ETS.202504_28(2).RP06Identifying student help-seeking behavior patterns and help-seeking tendencies from student problem-solving and help-seeking behavior data: An educational data mining approachChih-Yueh Chou, Wei-Han ChenStudies have shown that students have different help-seeking behavior patterns and tendencies and furthermore, that students with certain help-seeking behavior patterns and tendencies may have poor performance (i.e., at-risk students). This study applied an educational data mining approach, including clustering and classification, to analyze students’ problem-solving and help-seeking data in a computer assisted learning system to identify student help-seeking behavior patterns and tendencies. First, nine observable problem-solving and help-seeking features for identifying help-seeking behavior patterns were established. Second, this study applied the k-means clustering method and identified three well-known help-seeking behavior patterns: executive, avoidant, and instrumental help-seeking. The results further identified two new help-seeking behavior patterns. One was static instrumental help-seeking and the other was static instrumental and executive help-seeking. Third, executive help-seeking and static instrumental and executive help-seeking patterns could be used as at-risk predicators of poor performance. Fourth, the study applied clustered and identified results to build a minimum distance classifier to identify help-seeking behavior patterns in new data. The study also investigated the accuracy of the classifier in early identifying help-seeking behavior patterns from early-stage data. The early identification accuracy was 61% for the first three minutes and 75% for the seven-minutes of early-stage data, respectively. Fifth, this study identified three help-seeking tendencies: independent problem-solvers, executive help-seekers, and static instrumental and executive help-seekers. In summary, the study showed the feasibility and effectiveness of applying an educational data mining approach, including clustering and classification, to build data-driven student models to identify student help-seeking behavior patterns and tendencies.https://www.j-ets.net/collection/published-issues/28_2#h.hmuyxcdixa8ohelp-seeking behaviors and tendencieseducational data miningclusteringclassificationdata-driven student model
spellingShingle Chih-Yueh Chou, Wei-Han Chen
Identifying student help-seeking behavior patterns and help-seeking tendencies from student problem-solving and help-seeking behavior data: An educational data mining approach
Educational Technology & Society
help-seeking behaviors and tendencies
educational data mining
clustering
classification
data-driven student model
title Identifying student help-seeking behavior patterns and help-seeking tendencies from student problem-solving and help-seeking behavior data: An educational data mining approach
title_full Identifying student help-seeking behavior patterns and help-seeking tendencies from student problem-solving and help-seeking behavior data: An educational data mining approach
title_fullStr Identifying student help-seeking behavior patterns and help-seeking tendencies from student problem-solving and help-seeking behavior data: An educational data mining approach
title_full_unstemmed Identifying student help-seeking behavior patterns and help-seeking tendencies from student problem-solving and help-seeking behavior data: An educational data mining approach
title_short Identifying student help-seeking behavior patterns and help-seeking tendencies from student problem-solving and help-seeking behavior data: An educational data mining approach
title_sort identifying student help seeking behavior patterns and help seeking tendencies from student problem solving and help seeking behavior data an educational data mining approach
topic help-seeking behaviors and tendencies
educational data mining
clustering
classification
data-driven student model
url https://www.j-ets.net/collection/published-issues/28_2#h.hmuyxcdixa8o
work_keys_str_mv AT chihyuehchouweihanchen identifyingstudenthelpseekingbehaviorpatternsandhelpseekingtendenciesfromstudentproblemsolvingandhelpseekingbehaviordataaneducationaldataminingapproach